The purpose of our study was to define the detailed anatomy of the cisternal and canalicular segments of the facial nerve and vestibulocochlear nerves in the cerebellopontine angle cistern and internal auditory canal as depicted in 3D-FIESTA MR images in order to elucidate the etiopathogenesis of unexplained tinnitus, vertigo, unilateral hearing loss, and facial neuritis.

Patient selection The study group comprised 187 patients (104 women, 83 men; mean age, 48,8 years) in whom temporal bone MR imaging was performed for tinnitus, vertigo, unilateral hearing loss or facial neuritis. This patients were consecutively referred to our department for temporal bone MR imaging. All patients were evaluated between November 2009 and July 2010. MR imaging and evaluation Magnetic resonance imaging was performed on a General Electric (GE) Signa 1.5-T MR imaging system (GE Healthcare, Milwaukee, WI, USA) with an eight-channel head coil....

In all, 374 temporal bones in 187 patients were evaluated by MRI in our study. Facial and vestibulocochlear nerves, vascular structures were visualized with 3D FIESTA sequences. In all patients temporal MR imaging findings revealed, that 2 patients had unilaterally acoustic neuroma (1,1%), 1 had facial neuritis (0,5%), and 108 had vascular loop of AICA in PCA and/or IAC (57,8%). Among the patients with vascular loop 3D FIESTA images showed that 81 temporal bone had type I vascular loop (65,9%), 33 had type II vascular...

Vascular compression syndrome was first introduced in 1975 by Janetta as a clinical entity characterized by vascular structures pressing on cranial nerves [1,2]. Janetta was also the first to perform micro-vascular decompression surgery in cases with persistent vertigo. Since then, many surgeons have been applying the vascular decompression procedure in hemifacial spasm, trigeminal and geniculate neuralgia, hearing loss, tinnitus and vertigo [2,3]. The compression of cranial nerve VIII causes tinnitus, vertigo, hearing loss and dizziness, while the compression of cranial nerve VII often leads to...

1. Gultekin S, Celik H, Akpek S et al (2008) Vascular loops at the cerebellopontine angle: is there a correlation with tinnitus? AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 29:1746-1749 2. Sirikci A, Bayazit Y, Ozer E et al (2005) Magnetic resonance imaging based classification of anatomic relationship between the cochleovestibular nerve and anterior inferior cerebellar artery in patients with non-specific neuro-otologic symptoms. Surg Radiol Anat 27:531-535 3. Herzog JA, Bailey S, Meyer J (1997) Vascular loop of the internal auditory canal: A diagnostic dilemma. The Am J...